Arthroscopic, or more generally, minimally invasive surgical procedures rely on obtaining percutaneous access to an internal surgical site using small-diameter openings to gain access to the desired surgical site. In many cases, access tubes are placed through the opening to allow a variety of elongated instruments to be passed through the access tubes to gain access to an internal surgical work site without the need for large incisions. As a result, patient trauma and recovery time are typically reduced.
Very often, these access tubes, which are often called cannulas, must be left in an incision for an extended period of time, without significant movement, as instruments are inserted and removed. This typically requires rigid surface features on the exterior of the cannula, such as corrugations or threads, to engage the tissue surrounding the cannula. These rigid surface features, however, can cause tissue damage as the cannula is inserted and usually do not result in the most secure fit once in place due to tissue trauma surrounding the cannula. The cannula can also be difficult to remove once inserted due to the rigid surface features, possibly leading to further tissue damage during removal.
Accordingly, there is a need for improved devices and methods that provide access portals which can be inserted into and removed from an incision with minimal tissue damage and can effectively engage tissue while within the incision.